Chicago Physician Sentenced To Four Life Terms

A federal judge in Ohio sentenced a Chicago physician earlier this week to four life terms for his conviction in the drug overdose deaths of four of his patients.

U.S. District Court Judge Sandra Beckwith delivered the four life sentences to Dr. Paul H. Volkman, as well as sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years on 13 other counts connected to drug trafficking. Volkman dispensed more oxycodone in the years between 2003 and 2005 than any other physician in the United States.

“Volkman was the physician at the center of a criminal scheme to distribute millions of controlled substances to hundreds of individuals in exchange for cash – a scheme that brought addiction, diversion and death to southeastern Ohio and beyond,” wrote Assistant United States Attorneys Tim Oakley and Adam Wright in a sentencing memorandum to the judge.